Thomas Gray has sometimes been classified as a pre-Romantic writer. Romantic writers valued emotional experience over logical arguments, nature and common people over organized society, and imagination over reason. What evidence from “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” supports Gray’s classification as a pre-Romantic? Your response should be at least one paragraph long.
There are several pieces of evidence from Thomas Gray's "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" that support his classification as a pre-Romantic writer. One of the key characteristics of Romanticism is the emphasis on emotion over logic, and this is evident throughout Gray's poem. He explores profound and melancholic emotions such as sadness, grief, and empathy for the common laborers buried in the churchyard. The poem also reflects the Romantic idea of valuing nature and common people over organized society. Gray portrays the beauty of the natural world surrounding the churchyard and praises the simple lives of the country people who are buried there. Finally, the poem embodies the Romantic theme of imagination over reason. Gray uses vivid and evocative language, creating vivid images of the churchyard and its inhabitants, and inviting the reader to imagine the lives and experiences of these people. Overall, the emphasis on emotion, nature, and imagination in "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" supports Gray's classification as a pre-Romantic writer.
